Feed water economizer



Sept. 29, 1942. G. 1.1 KOTTES 2,295,999

' FEED WATER ECONOMIZERE Filed Jan. 16, 1941 2 Sheets-Shet 1 Sept. 29, 1942. e. L. KOTTES Y ,99

7 FEED WATER EGONOMIZER Filed Jan. 16, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 iMFG aZ;

| d Err-094 576 Patented Sept. 29, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFF-ICE I 2,296,999 FEED WATERjECONOMIZER George Leonidas Kottes, New Orleans, La. Application January 16, 1941, Serial No. 374,748

2 Claims.

The present invention relates to new and useful improvements in a feed water economizer, and more particularly to improvements in ,a feed water economizer of the general type shown in the prior patent of G. L. Kottes, No. 2,116,028, dated May 3, 1938.

The feed water economizer of the present invention is illustrated in connection with a boiler system but it is to be clearly understood that the economizer can be employed in various Water or steam systems and may be used in conjunction with a feed water heater, if so desired. For the purpose of increasing the efficiency of such systems, and particularly, a steam boiler system, the invention contemplates the provision of a feed water economizer which is properly positioned in the boiler system for heating the entering cold water prior to passage of the cold water into the boiler. The feed water economizer includes a plurality of groups of tubes which are connected to members constituting headers, and the tubes extend across the boiler casing so as to be heated by the hot exhaust gases emanating from the furnace. The entire assembly is such that it may be secured in any desired location across the path of the exhaust gases so that the feed water is given a preliminary heating while passing through the economizer and before passage thereof into the drum so that the efficiency of the boiler system is greatly increased. In such a system, provision must be made for the expansion and contraction of the tubes and in the above-mentioned patent, one end of each nest or bank of tubes is illustrated as being free to shift relative to the associated header and this construction necessitates the employment of some form of packing between the headers and the tubes.

An object of the present invention is to provide a feed water economizer which is particularly adapted for use in connection with high pressure steam generators and which obviates the necessity of employing packing around the tubes.

A further object of the invention is to provide a feed water economizer having the tubes secured to a header which is movable in response to expansion and contraction of the tubes.

Afurther object of the invention is to provide a feed water economizer which includes a stationary header for one end of the tubes and a supporting plate through which the tubes extend, the opposite ends of the tubes being secured to a movable header which is supported by the plate.

I The invention still further aims to provide a feed water economizer which is of simple cons'truction so as to facilitate the assembling thereof between the sides of a boiler casing, and which 7 is highly effective for increasing the efficiency of the system. 4

The above and other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and will be hereinafter more fully pointed out. I

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure l is a fragmentary diagrammatic transverse section through a boiler system and showing one location of the feed water economizer in relation thereto.

Figure 2 is an enlarged plan view showing the feed water economizer and connecting conduits.

Figure 3 is a further enlarged fragmentary section showing the ends of one bank of tubes passing through the supporting plate and secured in the movable header.

Figure 4 is a top plan view of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a plan view of the supporting plate.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the line BB of Figure 5.

Referring more in detail to the accompanying drawings, and particularly to Figure 1, the combustion chamber 10 is located above any suitable type of furnace stoker mechanism (not shown) and a baffle wall H extends partially across the combustion chamber so as to direct hot exhaust gases toward the elevated ends of an inclined bankof water tubes [2 which are connected between an uptake header I3 and a downtake header I4. The uptake header I3 is in communication with the transversely arranged steam or water drum l5 through horizontal conduits l6 and the downtake header i4 is in communication with the drum l5 through conduits ll. Transverse baffles l8 are "suitably arranged between the bank of tubes so as to direct the hot gases in contact therewith and in a sinuous path, as substantially illustrated in Figure 1. The furnace arch (not shown) prevents the escape of gases before reaching the outlet flue.

The feed water economizer E is disposed in the space between the bank of tubes I2 and the conduits l6 and H which connect the drum [5 with r the uptake and downtake headers I3,';l4, respectively. The economizer includes a plurality of I5 is provided with a steam outlet 2!,

through which the steam may pass to any desired location.

The detail construction of the feed water economizer will now be described, reference being had to Figures 2 through 6. The tubes I9, I91; of the economizer are illustrated as being arranged in groups of four, but the number of tubes and the number of groups of tubes may be varied according to the size of the boiler system with which the economizer is to be used. As shown in Figure 2, the feed water economizer is connected across the sides 22, 22a of the boiler casing with the tubes l9, I9a disposed in the path of the exhaust gases. A stationary header plate 23 is secured to the outside of the casing Wall 22 and is provided with openings for the.tubes l9, l9a. The ends of the tubes are rolled and expanded outwardly into tight sealing contact with,

the header plate, as shown at 24, 24a. An angle pipe section 25 is secured to the header plate 23 ancl'constitutes a' header in communication with the inlet ends of the tubes IS. The angle pipe section 25 is connected to the supply line 26 for the entering cold water. A valve mechanism 21 is disposed between the angle section 25 and the supply line 26 and a by-pass conduit 28 is also connected adjacent the valve mechanism 21. A drain pipe may be connected to the angle section 25 through an opening 25a. An angle section 29 is secured to the plate 23 and constitutes a header for the outlet ends of the tubes la and is in communication with the conduit 29 leading to the drum l5. Between the conduit 20 and the angle section 29, there is provided a valve mechanism 30 and a connection with the opposite end of the by-pass conduit 28 which is controlled by a valve 3|. A thermometer or the like may be inserted in an opening 29a in the angle section 29.

A supporting plate 32 is illustrated as being mounted on the outside of the opposite casing Wall 2211 and the details of this supporting plate are particularly shown in Figures and 6. The tubes I9, 190. extend across the pathof the exhaust gases between the casing walls and'through openings in the wall 22a and also through openings 33, 33a in the plate 32. This plate may be secured to the casing wall in any suitable manner and is provided with a plurality of pockets or lugs 34 which extend around the periphery of the plate and also across the central portion thereof. These lugs are illustrated as being formed integral with the plate 32 and as extending inwardly through the casing wall 220.. Each lug is in the form of a bushing having a longitudinal bore 35 into which a pin extends in the manner to be hereinafter fully pointed out.

The tubes l9, I9a extend through the openings 33, 33a, respectively, and outwardly beyond the plate 32. The extended ends of the tubes l9, l9a are rolled and expanded outwardly into tight sealing contact with the edges of openings through a movable header plate 31, as at 38, 38a. A return bend 39 affords communication between the ends of the tubes [9 and the ends of the tubes I91: and includes flange portions 40, 40a which constitute headers in communication with the adjacent ends of both banks of tubes. The flanges 49, 40a are secured to the movable header plate 31 by bolts or the like. A safety valve-may be inserted in the return bend 39 through an opening 39a and removable plugs 4| are provided in the return bend for purposes of cleaning or the like. The movable header plate 31 thus supports the return bend 39 and carries a plurality of inwardly extending studs or pins -42 which are secured thereto in any suitable manner. These studs are located symmetrically with respect to the bushings 34 on the plate 32 so that each stud is adapted to extend into the corresponding bore 35 of a bushing 34. The studs are thus mounted in the supporting plate which serves to support the assembly of the movable header plate 3'! and the return bend 39. The banks of tubes l9, l9a are thus mounted across the casing walls so that the water passing therethrough will be heated by the exhaust gases. One end of each bank of tubes is fixed in sealed relationship with a stationary header plate 23 and the opposite end of spect to a. movable header plate 31 which, in turn,

. is mountedby means of the pins 42 and bushings 34 so as to be movable relative to the plate 32.

jSimilarly,"the return bend 39 is also movable with movement of the movable header plate 31.

Inoperation of the system, the valve 3| controlling the by-pass conduit 28 is closed and the valves 21 and 30 are opened so that cold water enters the conduit 26 and passes through the pipe section into the first bank of tubes l9. This entering water is heated by the furnace gases in passing through the tubes I9 and the water then passes through th return bend 39 and into the second bank of tubes l9a. The water is then further heated while passing through the tubes I911. and from the outlet ends of these tubes, the heated water passes through the pipe section 29 and into the conduit 20. The conduit 20 directs the water to the drum- I5 from which this preheated feed water passes through the conduits l1 into the downtake header M. The water is then further heated as usual and the steam generated passes from the uptake header l3 through the conduits l6- and into the drum from which it may be drawn off through the stream outlet 2|. When it is desired to pass the entering cold water directly into the drum IS, the valves 21 and 30 may be closed and a by-pass valve 3| opened. Similarly, the water may be by-passed around the economizer when it is necessary to inspect, remove, or repair the parts thereof.

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that longitudinal expansion and contraction of the tubes, 19, 19a, is permitted by the provision of a movable header assembly to which the ends of the tubes are fixed in sealed relationship. The

opposite. ends of the tubes are fixed in sealed relationship with the stationary header assembly. The interfitting pins and bushings serve to support the movable header assembly which includes the return bend and, if desired, a very small opening may be provided through the closed ends of the bushings 34 for the purpose of relieving any pressure that might develop between the ends of the studs and the ends of the bushings during movement of the movable header assembly relative to the supporting plate 32. The interfitting relationship between the bushings and the pins provides a substantially sealed telescoping connection. which is such as to prevent the escape of gases although the plate 32 may be mounted in other suitable ways. The holes in the plate 32 through which the tubes I9, I90. extend are properly dimensioned to permit the desired radial expansion or contraction of the tubes while preventing escape of gases. For each specific installation, the stack 'or casing temperature is taken into consideration and the dimensionsand clearances are accordingly determined.

The economizer structure of the present invention is such as to provide an arrangement which may be easily installed and readily repaired with a minimum number of specially constructed parts. The mounting of the economizer with respect to the source of heat may be altered for any particular installation. While one form of the invention has been shown for purposes of illustration, it is to be clearly understood that various changes in the details of construction and arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A feed water economizer comprising spaced stationary and movable header members, a plurality of tubes extendin through said header members in fixed sealing relationship therewith and providing for the passage of water between inlet and outlet conduits, a plate located between said header members and fixed with respect to said stationary header and having openings through which the tubes extend in slidable and substantially sealed relationship, and means including interfitting bushings and pins associated with said movable header member and said plate for providing substantially sealed supporting connections between said movable header memher and said plate and permitting relative movement between the said movable header member and said plate whereby to provide for expansion and contraction of the tubes.

2. A feed water economizer comprising spaced stationary and movable header members, a plurality of tubes extending through said header members in fixed sealing relationship therewith and providing for the passage of water between inlet and outlet conduits, a plate located between said header members and fixed with respect to said stationary header and having openings through which the tubes extend in slidable and substantially sealed relationship, said plate having a plurality of bushings extending therefrom towards said stationary header, and projecting pins carried by said movable header member and extending into said bushings for providing a substantially sealed telescoping supporting connection between the movable header member and said plate whereby to permit relative movement between the said movable header member and said plate in order to provide for expansion and contraction of the tubes.

GEORGE LEONIDAS KOTTES.

Patent No. 2,296,999 Granted September 29, 1942 GEORGE LEONIDAS KOTTES The above entitled patent was extended February 26, 1952, under the provisions of the act of June 30, 1950, for 5 years and 311 days from the expiration of the original term thereof.

Commissioner of Patents. 

